Obama, Local Democrats Win In Rockdale County

Four years ago, George W. Bush carried Rockdale County with 60.5% of the vote.

Four years later, Barack Obama won the same county with 54.4% and provided the coattails for two local Democrats to make history as the first two black county elected officials.

It was a precarious night for Rockdale County incumbents - as well as a historic one for black candidates - as a wave of Democratic victories swept through the local electorate, ushering in the community's first two black countywide officeholders, with the possibility of a third joining their ranks.

Incumbent Board of Commissioners Chairman Roy Middlebrooks lost his bid for re-election to Democratic challenger Richard Oden. Democrat Ruth Wilson snagged the seat left vacant by retiring Clerk of Courts Joanne Caldwell, besting Republican Sharon Barksdale. [Source: Rockdale (County) Citizen, "Big night for Dems", November 5, 2008]

Until last night, all of Rockdale County's elected officials were Republican. Now two, and a possible third, are Democrats.